What are the most common mistakes you see product marketing candidates make during an interview?

1. They didn't prepare. It's really hard to justify moving a candidate forward if they don't know basic details about our company, their answers lack details and depth, and/or they don't have questions for the interviewer. 2. They are too long-winded or rambling, and/or their answers are mostly jargon. Of course we want to hear candidates reference terms we use in our day-to-day work. But if all their answers are more buzzwords than substance, or if they struggle to communicate in a concise and ...Read More

The biggest mistake I see candidates making is that they do not spend time learning about the product and the space it operates in.  My recommendation is that you spend time on the website and learn some basics about the product and it's practitioners (personas), identify the newest features released, and find out if the product operates in a category that Gartner or Forrester tracks to see where it stands in the market. Doing this research will help you develop context for the space the product ...Read More

I'm a huge fan of shorter, concise resumes. If you can articulate your journey and experience on one page, it will help me to process your resume well. Some red flags I've observed: Typos/grammatical errors on resumes - Attention to detail is a core skill for a PMM, so it is a big turn-off for me if your resume has these errors. Lack of customer narrative - Customer conversations are integral to a PMM role, so if it's not mentioned in during the interview that's a red flag for me. Run-on sentenc ...Read More

They know very little about our market, product, and competitors, and haven't really made an effort to learn.  One way to stand out in the interview process is to show that you have a solid understanding of what the company does. If you can confidently speak about their competitors, talk about their product, show you understand their market, you will impress them. They'll have confidence in your ability to hit the ground running, and you'll show you took the initiative to learn about their space ...Read More

In general, I think the most common mistakes fall under the category of not being properly prepared. However, here are a few examples that come to mind when I think about interviews that could have gone better.  Not familiar with our product/service  Talk about wanting to join the company because of the trajectory of the company (versus being excited about the product, mission, etc)   Talk poorly of their previous employers  Not ask any questions  Not able to provide clear examples of previous w ...Read More

Interviews are always a nervous process for candidates, so I always try to be more empathetic and put myself in the candidate's shoes. I try to be more tolerant of the fact that candidates are under the stress. However, some mistakes can be avoided: 1. Not having your story tailored to the job requirements: no need to tell about all your job achievements from every company. Focus on what's needed for this role. 2. Not having your homework done: the less you know about the company, the less you a ...Read More

The most common mistakes I've seen product marketing candidates make during an interview (and some lessons I've learned along the way) are: Not doing research: Always come to an interview prepared. Have a basic understanding of the company's offering, read a few case studies, connect with the interviewer on LinkedIn, know the company's main competitors, and read their recent press releases. Review the job description for the role you're interviewing for and connect the dots of what they are look ...Read More